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The Kepler conjecture is a famous problem in the field of discrete mathematics and geometry, specifically concerning the arrangement of spheres. It was proposed by the German mathematician Johannes Kepler in 1611. The conjecture states that no arrangement of spheres (or, more generally, circles or other three-dimensional shapes) can pack more densely than the face-centered cubic (FCC) packing or the hexagonal close packing (HCP).
A Kakeya set is a set of points in a Euclidean space (typically in two or higher dimensions) that has the property that a needle, or line segment, of unit length can be rotated freely within the set without leaving it. The classic example is the Kakeya set in the plane, which can be thought of as a bounded region that can contain a unit segment that can be rotated to cover all angles.
An **integrally convex set** refers to a special type of set in the context of integer programming and combinatorial optimization.
An "integer triangle" typically refers to a triangle in which the lengths of all three sides are integers. For a triangle to exist with given side lengths, they must satisfy the triangle inequality theorem, which states that for any triangle with sides of lengths \( a \), \( b \), and \( c \): 1. \( a + b > c \) 2. \( a + c > b \) 3.
The Honeycomb Conjecture is a mathematical statement regarding the most efficient way to partition a given area using shapes, specifically focusing on the arrangement of regular hexagons. The conjecture asserts that a regular hexagonal grid provides the most efficient way to divide a plane into regions of equal area with the least perimeter compared to any other shape.
Hinged dissection is a method in geometry that involves cutting a two-dimensional shape into pieces that can be folded or hinged around common points, allowing the pieces to reconfigure into another shape without overlapping. The concept is often illustrated using paper cutouts, where the cuts create "hinges" at specific points, enabling the pieces to pivot or swing into place. A classic example of hinged dissection is transforming a square into a triangle or vice versa.
The Hadwiger Conjecture is a significant statement in combinatorial geometry that relates to the coloring of the plane with respect to convex sets, particularly focusing on the properties of regions defined by convex shapes.
The Erdős–Diophantine graph is a concept in graph theory that arises in connection with number theory and combinatorics, particularly focusing on the relationships defined by some Diophantine properties. In this setting, the vertices of the graph typically represent natural numbers or integers, and edges are drawn based on a specific Diophantine condition. The most common version of the Erdős–Diophantine graph considers pairs of integers that satisfy a particular equation or set of equations.
The Erdős distinct distances problem, posed by the Hungarian mathematician Paul Erdős in 1946, is a question in combinatorial geometry that seeks to determine the minimum number of distinct distances between points in a given finite set in the plane. Specifically, the problem asks for the largest number of points \( n \) that can be placed in the plane such that the number of distinct distances between pairs of points is minimized.
Equidissection is a mathematical concept related to the idea of dividing shapes into pieces in such a way that the pieces can be rearranged to form another shape of equal area or volume. It involves partitioning a geometric figure into smaller pieces that can be reconfigured without changing their size, typically to demonstrate equivalence in area or volume between different figures. One of the popular contexts for discussing equidissection is in geometry, specifically in polygonal and polyhedral dissections.
The Dissection Problem refers to a type of mathematical problem in geometry and combinatorial optimization where the goal is to dissect or cut a shape into a finite number of pieces that can be reassembled into another shape. This kind of problem often involves exploring how different shapes can be transformed into one another through geometric means.
The Disk Covering Problem is a combinatorial optimization problem related to covering a set of points in a multidimensional space using a minimal number of disks (or circles in 2D). The main goal is to determine the smallest number of disks of a given radius needed to cover all points in a specified area or space.
Discrete and Computational Geometry is a branch of mathematics and computer science that focuses on the study of geometric objects and their relationships, as well as the algorithms used to process and analyze these structures. It combines elements of combinatorial geometry, which deals with arrangements and properties of geometric objects, with computational geometry, which involves the development of algorithms to solve geometric problems.
The Rado covering problem is a classic problem in combinatorics, particularly in the area of graph theory and set theory. The problem is named after mathematician Georgy Rado and deals with the concept of partitioning and covering subsets of sets. The problem can be stated in the following way: You are given a set \( S \), which is typically infinite, and a family of subsets of \( S \).
The **connective constant** is a term used in statistical physics and combinatorics, particularly in the study of percolation theory and random walks on lattices. It quantifies the growth rate of connected clusters in a random graph or a lattice structure.
Combinatorial Geometry is a branch of mathematics that deals with the study of geometric objects and their combinatorial properties, often in a discrete setting. When we refer specifically to "Combinatorial Geometry in the Plane," we are primarily concerned with planar arrangements of points, lines, polygons, and other geometric figures, and how these arrangements relate to various combinatorial aspects.
Close-packing of equal spheres refers to the arrangement of spheres (or balls) in such a way that they occupy the maximum possible volume relative to the total volume of the space in which they are contained. This concept is particularly important in fields such as crystallography, materials science, and solid-state physics.
Centroidal Voronoi Tessellation (CVT) is a specific type of Voronoi tessellation where the sites of the Voronoi cells are chosen to be the centroids (centers of mass) of their respective cells. This idea combines the concepts of Voronoi diagrams and centroid calculations to optimize the placement of points in a given space, often leading to more evenly distributed and spatially balanced cell shapes.
Carpenter's rule problem, often related to measuring and cutting materials in carpentry, involves practical challenges faced by carpenters when attempting to measure lengths accurately with a ruler that may have limited precision. One of the more classical interpretations of the Carpenter's rule problem involves determining how to cut a longer piece of wood into shorter lengths using only a limited-length ruler.
Pinned article: Introduction to the OurBigBook Project
Welcome to the OurBigBook Project! Our goal is to create the perfect publishing platform for STEM subjects, and get university-level students to write the best free STEM tutorials ever.
Everyone is welcome to create an account and play with the site: ourbigbook.com/go/register. We belive that students themselves can write amazing tutorials, but teachers are welcome too. You can write about anything you want, it doesn't have to be STEM or even educational. Silly test content is very welcome and you won't be penalized in any way. Just keep it legal!
Intro to OurBigBook
. Source. We have two killer features:
- topics: topics group articles by different users with the same title, e.g. here is the topic for the "Fundamental Theorem of Calculus" ourbigbook.com/go/topic/fundamental-theorem-of-calculusArticles of different users are sorted by upvote within each article page. This feature is a bit like:
- a Wikipedia where each user can have their own version of each article
- a Q&A website like Stack Overflow, where multiple people can give their views on a given topic, and the best ones are sorted by upvote. Except you don't need to wait for someone to ask first, and any topic goes, no matter how narrow or broad
This feature makes it possible for readers to find better explanations of any topic created by other writers. And it allows writers to create an explanation in a place that readers might actually find it.Figure 1. Screenshot of the "Derivative" topic page. View it live at: ourbigbook.com/go/topic/derivativeVideo 2. OurBigBook Web topics demo. Source. - local editing: you can store all your personal knowledge base content locally in a plaintext markup format that can be edited locally and published either:This way you can be sure that even if OurBigBook.com were to go down one day (which we have no plans to do as it is quite cheap to host!), your content will still be perfectly readable as a static site.
- to OurBigBook.com to get awesome multi-user features like topics and likes
- as HTML files to a static website, which you can host yourself for free on many external providers like GitHub Pages, and remain in full control
Figure 2. You can publish local OurBigBook lightweight markup files to either OurBigBook.com or as a static website.Figure 3. Visual Studio Code extension installation.Figure 5. . You can also edit articles on the Web editor without installing anything locally. Video 3. Edit locally and publish demo. Source. This shows editing OurBigBook Markup and publishing it using the Visual Studio Code extension. - Infinitely deep tables of contents:
All our software is open source and hosted at: github.com/ourbigbook/ourbigbook
Further documentation can be found at: docs.ourbigbook.com
Feel free to reach our to us for any help or suggestions: docs.ourbigbook.com/#contact





